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National Research Flagships. John Williams – 12 December 2006. Celebrating 80 Years. CSIRO. You know us already, but we are…. 6500 staff located at 56 sites CSIRO ranks in top 1% of world scientific institutions in 13 of 22 research fields 3500 patents granted or pending world-wide
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National Research Flagships John Williams – 12 December 2006
CSIRO You know us already, but we are… • 6500 staff located at 56 sites • CSIRO ranks in top 1% of world scientific institutions in 13 of 22 research fields • 3500 patents granted or pending world-wide • More than 163 companies are based on CSIRO intellectual property
National Research Flagships Launched April 2003
Flagships • Focus resources on issues of national importance and urgency (water, energy, health, oceans, transforming industries)-around 30% of CSIRO • Align with NRP’s • Seize opportunities only attainable through large-scale R&D/industry partnership (national and global) • Driven by outcomes and delivery • Intrinsically multi-disciplinary
Energy Transformed • Energy futures • Low emission electricity • Low emission transport • Low emission distributed • energy National Solar Energy Centre
Food Futures • Advanced genetics - delivering premium value in food and feed • Breed engineering • Innovative processing • Quality biosensors • Value chain improvement and integration LC-ω3 PUFA oilseed crop
Light Metals • Aluminium and magnesium manufacturing • Alumina • Aluminium • Magnesium • Titanium A continuous process (TiRO) for cp grade titanium from titanium tetrachloride.
* * * Preventative Health • Colorectal cancer • Neurodegenerative disease, mental disorders and brain health • Health data & information • Cardiovascular disease • Gut health The health challenge for Australia *Productivity Commission 2005, Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia, Melbourne, April
Water for a Healthy Country • Southwest WA • Urban waterscapes • Great Barrier Reef catchments • River Murray region • Australian water systems • Water Resources Observation Network (WRON)
Wealth from Oceans • Ocean system prediction and responses • Ocean based forecasts of Australian climate • Ocean based industry development and growth • Ocean based regional development and growth Supercomputing and high-resolution ocean circulation models
Flagship Collaboration Fund • Flagship Collaboration Fund part of the BAA2 package in 2004 Budget • $96.8M over seven years (2004/05 to 2010/11) • Designed to increase external collaboration (primarily with Australian universities) as a key feature of Flagships • CSIRO prepared guidelines in consultation with universities, AVCC and ARC
Flagship Collaboration Fund The Collaboration Fund supports: • Clusters minimum of $1M p.a. for approx. 3 years with Australian universities, CRCs and other PFRAs • Projects approx. $100,000 for 1 year, with Australian universities • Visiting Fellowships academics from Australian and overseas universities • Postgraduate Scholarships with university and CSIRO supervision
Flagship Collaboration Fund Collaboration Fund activity to date: • 10 Clusters approved from rounds 1 and 2-next call due mid-2007 • 21 Project applications approved to proceed so far with 8 under consideration • 10 Visiting Fellowships to date, with 2 under consideration-advertising now for 2007 • 56 Postgraduate scholarships to date with applications for 2007 just closed • 20 Australian universities involved in Clusters, Projects and Fellowships, with the majority involved in more than one activity • 5 ARC Federation Fellows involved in existing Clusters
Recent Flagship Review • Following a week of presentations, analysis of written material, detailed discussions and laboratory visits: • …the “overwhelming conclusion from the Panel is that the Flagship model has provided a compelling framework within which broad ranges of research capabilities are assembled to focus on outcomes of national significance to Australia”.
Some Key Recommendations • The Panel strongly endorsed the continuation of the Flagship Initiative at least at the current funding level • Flagships continue to place emphasis on the Flagship Collaboration Fund clusters as an effective collaboration mechanism • That the impact of the Flagships and the flagship model could be broadened by involvement to an even wider research community • That the move of resources to what is, at least in the short-term, a lower base from which to generate external earnings has created a case for seeking transition funding • That the success of the Flagship model could be more broadly applied across the NIS